'See one, do one, teach one': finding your mentor in academic medicine

Sustaining a legacy in STEM the Prof. Tara Prasad Dasgupta way: The role of a mentor in our lives

A mentoring relationship is a close, individualized relationship that develops over time between a graduate student and his/her adviser, and that includes both caring and guidance. Although there is a connection between mentors and advisers, not all mentors are advisers and not all advisers are mentors, but in this case, one adviser was a mentor to all. In his eloquent style, an inspirational mentor of underrepresented individuals in Jamaica by the name of Prof. Tara Prasad Dasgupta, AKA Prof., paved the way for many us who studied in the Department of Chemistry, The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, Jamaica from 1974 until his passing on Monday, April 2020 due to the complications of the COVID-19. Based on his effective mentoring style and the fact that there is low percentage of underrepresented individuals who pursue Ph.D. degrees in the STEM subjects around the world, more so here in the U.S.A., Europe, and in the U.K., hence there is a need to write about a story on sustaining a legacy in STEM the Prof. Tara Prasad Dasgupta way, viz., the role of a mentor in our lives. As such, his style is documented here, along with testimonies from his former graduate students, including myself.

Longitudinal pharmacy student presentations mentored by pharmacy residents: A pilot study

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Alignment of pharmacy student and resident experiences provides a unique opportunity for near-peer mentorship. The purpose of this pilot study was to assess pharmacy resident mentorship and feedback skills through participation in a longitudinal pharmacy student and resident seminar series.

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY AND SETTING

A longitudinal, near-peer mentorship experience was developed in which first- and second-year pharmacy residents mentored advanced pharmacy practice experience student seminar presentations. Following seminar presentations, residents provided verbal and written feedback to students and faculty pharmacists provided feedback to residents. Student and resident learners were then surveyed to assess resident near-peer mentorship.

FINDINGS

Over a single academic year, 26 students delivered 45 seminar presentations that were mentored by 20 residents. Student and resident survey responses were similar and provided favorable feedback on resident mentorship.

SUMMARY

The structured near-peer mentorship experience embedded into our longitudinal seminar series provided residents the opportunity to develop and strengthen their mentorship and feedback skills. Resident mentors were found to be effective in near-peer mentorship of a single activity.